Rage Against the Machine Guitarist Fires Back at Nepotism Claims Involving His Son

The argument surrounding nepotism is a complicated one. On one hand, every parent should want to help their kids be successful in the world. They shouldn’t want to see them struggle like they had to. Consequently, they’ll do anything in their power to make things easier for them. On the other hand, people find it unfair that celebrities can take opportunities away from others to prop up their children.

Rage Against The Machine guitarist Tom Morello finds the idea of nepotism to be null and void. Why? Because he believes his son Roman is talented enough to have made it with or without him.

In an interview with Guitar World, Morello argued that his son is as good as any working guitarist today. Ultimately, he stressed that having a strong ear gives him a distinct advantage than even the most savvy players, himself included.

“Here’s the thing: it’s not nepotism when your kid’s that f**king good,” Tom Morello laughed. “There’s a lot of great players out there, but I’ll put my kid up against anybody. He has something that I didn’t have, which is an ear. I had to fight forever because I had zero natural ability, so it took me maybe 10 years to find my voice. But Roman Morello has got an ear and has a natural [internal] jukebox.”

Tom Morello Says His Son is Better Than a Lot of Guitarists Working Today

Given the natural talent, Morello commissioned his son Roman to write on his most recent album Everyone Gets Everything They Want. On five different songs, he said that they share a lot of the same taste in riffs. However, Roman Morello worked his fingers in ways that the old man couldn’t even wrap his mind around.

“My son Roman was a co-writer of five songs from this record. I always have an ear to his door and poach his best riffs, so there’s a kinship there,” Tom Morello explained. “He has the Morello DNA and writes riffs that are familiar to me. But his fingers move in ways I’d never think of. So, the riff from Everyone Gets Everything They Want is really counterintuitive to me.”

Then, Tom Morello added that “Soldier in The Army of Love” might sound like one of his signature riffs. But it was actually one from his son that he spent quite a while to figure out. “That’s a Roman riff that Tom had some difficulty learning,” he joked.

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